About the Recipe
p.156 Battered: A Whipped and Sipped Mystery
“Everyone approached the gigantic tray and chose a cookie or two. After much study, the children took two or three each and scattered to the back bedrooms. Everyone munched while LaTonya continued taking pictures. Tinley was first to comment. “I love this chocolate-chocolate chip cookie,” she said.
“Mine is coffee-flavored,” said Bill, making a face. “I hate coffee.”
Tinley smacked him on his shoulder. “Does everyone need to know what you don’t like?”
Alene wanted to hug her. Lydia said she loved her cinnamon cookie and wondered if it was gluten-free but nobody responded. She nibbled a few bites before passing it to Theo, who said, “Crunchiest cookie I’ve ever tasted.”
Cal and Mitzi wanted to taste more flavors, so they shared plates. Neal blurted across the table, “This one is kind of buttery almond. Did you use real butter, Ruthie? I thought you were vegetarian.”
Ruthie smiled while Alene imagined an imaginary bubble above her head that said, “Of course there’s no butter, you dingbat. Vegans don’t use animal products.” What Ruthie actually said, in the same voice she used to speak to her eight-year-old son was, “I’m vegan, and we don’t use animal products in anything, Neal. Which cookie did you like best?”
Neal muttered, “They’re both good, I guess.”
Ingredients
1 cup Almond or Peanut Butter (smooth or chunky)
½ to 1 cup packed dark brown sugar (optional, really)
1 egg (or a flax egg, or whip up half the liquid from a can of chickpeas)
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 package semisweet vegan chocolate chips
Preparation
Line two baking pans with silicone baking mats or parchment paper
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Stir first six ingredients together with a spoon
Stir in chocolate chips
Place unformed globs of batter about 2″ apart on greased baking pan
Bake about 12 minutes until they are slightly browned and puffy
Cool on pan and then transfer to a rack
They store well and are great cold from the fridge